Nobody Likes a Ball
by TheDragonLover
Summary: She was quiet the rest of the way there, and they quickly found their spots across from Team Charm at the table. Melody gritted her teeth. 'This is going to be the biggest test of my self-control yet.' Gallantshipping oneshot for SilverUmbra.


SU's Gallantshipping oneshot

_I've finished it, woohoo! It was so much fun, although it turned out completely sappy at the end. XP Oh, well, I hope you like it, SU!_

_Rain = Gallade  
Melody = Roserade  
Bobby = Rhyperior  
Corvax = Arbok  
Toxi = Drapion  
Lady Weavile = Weavile (der)_

* * *

"Come on, Melody! Lighten up!"

"Lighten up?" The Roserade held out her arms in a frustrated display. "How can you tell me to lighten up? Team _Charm_ is there, Bobby. I _can't_ lighten up when _they're_ there."

"Oh, come on," the Rhyperior told her as she attempted to fix Melody's cape, "they're not _that_ aggravating. _My_ voice can get more annoying!" She was hovering around the Bouquet Pokemon like a worried mother hen, trying to pretty her up for the ball that was being held at Wigglytuff's Guild. Actually, it wasn't much of a ball, but it was the closest thing Treasure Town was going to get to one, so they had to make the most of it. Bobby was trying to make sure Melody kept her beauty throughout the entire thing, as she wasn't really worried about herself – she didn't have anyone to impress, after all, or at least not that she knew of.

Melody crossed her arms and gave a "hmph", grumbling, "Yes, they are…stupid preps. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I hate them." She had a far-off look in her eyes, as if she was thinking of something else, and the Rhyperior smiled as she had an idea of what it was.

Her face calm, Bobby said casually, "But, everyone's going, so it's not like it was a surprise, really. And besides, Rain and I will be there to suffer with you."

As she expected, Melody grew quiet at the mention of the Gallade of their team, and the Drill Pokemon smiled triumphantly as she worked to fix the delicate white petals that seemed to form a crown on her head. She was left to work in silence, while the subject of her fretting and makeover was lost in her own thoughts.

Melody remembered how they had come across the news of the ball; that annoying Chatot had flown into their base and told them they were all "invited" (more like "forced") to come to the ball-like event they were holding in the Guild. It was going to be sort of like a "reunion" for them all – Pokemon were coming from near and very far to celebrate, and it was really important that certain teams were present. Aka Team Raider and Team Charm, the two Master Rank teams from the Guild.

Melody was not happy about that, at all. She did not like gatherings like that, mostly because she was a bit shy and embarrassed around a lot of Pokemon, but also because Team Charm were almost always there – and bothering Melody, Bobby, and the team's leader, Rain. Not purposefully, really, but they always seemed to hit _just_ the right buttons to tick Melody off, embarrass Rain and plain insult Bobby. It wasn't their fault, they didn't know any better…but that didn't make it any better.

Especially because they didn't know that them just _talking_ to Rain was enough to make the Roserade want to know Flamethrower to torch them, let alone _flirting_ with him. And she hated fire.

_What right do _they_ have?_ She scowled as Bobby adjusted her cape, fuming about how yesterday she had caught the Lopunny of the team giggling with Rain while he went shopping. To be honest, she had snuck after him because she knew it was going to happen eventually, but still – finding her there with him was infuriating. She just kept giggling and smiling and batting those damn eyelashes…ooh, she made her furious! _The Gardevoir is even worse, though…. Just one time, I'd like nobody to look my way. Then, POW! Solarbeam to the face!_

As Bobby was looking her friend over, she asked Melody, "Why are you making those faces?" It was something between a scowl and a smirk that she had seen on the Grass/Poison-Type's face a few times before, and it was almost scary to try to imagine what she was thinking of.

"Huh? Oh, umm," she looked away, a bit self-conscious after being caught imagining Team Charm's destruction, "nothing." The Rhyperior didn't look convinced, but she didn't push the subject as she adjusted her cape once more.

* * *

"Come on, _focus_, man."

The Gallade sighed, momentarily putting down the banner he was helping set up in the Guild with the Arbok from Team AWD. "I'm sorry, Corvax. It's just…." He looked around warily, making sure no one was listening before whispering, "I really don't want to be here."

"No worries," Corvax replied with a flick of his tongue, "no ones really does. Well, no one with any _sense_, anyways." He jerked his head discreetly in the direction of the Medicham humming as she worked on the tables, helping Chimecho with setting the plates and food and such. Rain rolled his eyes at the gesture but continued assisting him, and when they finally got it to stay up they sat down to have a real talk. "I had to give up a high-paying mission for this. What's _your_ reason of reluctance?"

"I don't exactly enjoy these things," he bit his lip, "because my _team_ doesn't enjoy it. If they're not happy, _I'm_ not happy." To be honest, he knew that Bobby wasn't bothered by it, but he knew how much Melody hated them, and he hated to see her wallow and fume in a corner.

"Wish the same could be said for mine," the serpent joked, getting a small smile from the Gallade before he continued more seriously. "Why don't you sneak out a little while after it starts? Introduce yourselves to most of the people, and then split!"

"We can't do that!" He sounded appalled at the idea. "We were told to stay!"

Corvax grinned and asked him, "If you were told to jump off of a cliff, would you do it?" After letting him mull over it, he continued, "Anyways, you'll have some time to consult with your team about it, because they're here."

Rain's head shot up immediately as he looked for them, and the Arbok grinned as they caught sight of the girls crawling down the ladder. Bobby was the first one going down, and Melody stayed above her so she'd be able to catch her with her vines in case she fell (and so she didn't fall on top of her). The Gallade looked at them with eagerness and pity, and he was going to call out to them when they got to the bottom of the ladder when –

_Fwump!_

Suddenly, he could only see white, and it took him a moment of flailing and cursing to figure out that he was under the banner he had thought was securely fastened above their heads. He and Corvax fought their way out from under it, only to see both of their teams looking at them as if they had grown wings on their heads when they got out. Both were sheepish and embarrassed, and Rain's face flushed when he noticed his team trying to hide their snickering. He stood up and dusted himself off, clearing his throat to try to regain his dignity.

"Maybe we should have tried tacks instead of tape," the Arbok whispered to him.

"Yeah. Maybe we should've."

* * *

"Hi!" The tallest of the trio of Poochyena smiled warmly, telling the team, "I'm Rocky, and this is Pant and Bruno." His tail wagged happily as he began to tell them about the criminal they had to chase just yesterday.

The ball had started without a hitch, and now was the time to socialize before the actual feast was to begin. Pokemon were moving all across the room to get to everyone else, and it was a clutter of chatter that seemed so welcoming and noisy that it was like a family reunion. While some people enjoyed it, however, others loathed it.

Although Rain was listening and Bobby could fake it, Melody was bored out of her mind and was busy looking around the place, highly alert of who was around them. She was scanning the room, in search of the trio of squealing, annoying girls, but they were nowhere to be found. What happened to them? Did they run away after the Swellow from Team Tasty? _We can only hope._

Finally unable to stand it, she excused herself quietly and walked briskly away from her team. Managing to slink into the hallways where the guild members' rooms were, she walked to her team's old place and quietly stood in front of the window. It had fallen dark while the ball went on, and she stared out at the starry sky while trying to collect her thoughts that had been scrambled because of the event.

_I'm going to go insane._ She sat down in the beanie chair beside the window, put her elbow on the windowsill and sighed as she placed her chin on the bouquet. _I can't keep this up, watching out for Team Charm, trying to act normal around him…Bobby knows, but he just doesn't seem to see it. Maybe that's a good thing…._ She sighed again. _But, that doesn't mean I wouldn't _like_ him to know._

As she continued to stare outside, the stars twinkling in the sky, she picked some of the constellations out and scowled at the Gardevoir one. _Stupid Lilian, she needs to go shove a Qwilfish into her mouth and shut up._ Slowly, she got the other two Pokemon that represented the other members of Team Charm, and she proceeded to mentally tell them what they could do with themselves.

_And you,_ she sighed as she finally looked at the Gallade constellation, _can just be as oblivious as usual and never notice my odd behavior. Nope, you can just walk on by, head in the clouds as you enjoy life._ She tilted her head at it, thinking. _…You know, I don't think you really like anyone in that way right now. You've never acted like you did, anyways, not even when the idiots were flirting with you. So, technically, I still have a chance…._

She smiled. "That's reassuring, surprisingly."

"Melody?"

"Ahh!" She jumped up from the chair and whirled around to see her leader standing in the doorway of the room, looking at her with a frown of concern on his face. She gulped, guilty that he had found her hiding out in there, and asked him, "Uhh, yeah, Rain?" After all of this thinking about him, she was extremely paranoid that he might now be examining her to see if she had anything to hide, and it was chipping away at her façade from the inside out.

"Um…." He was silent for a moment, making some decision in his head, before he cleared his throat and told her, "You know you shouldn't be in here. And besides, the food's coming now. We have to sit near the Guildmaster."

Melody winced. It was taboo to say the Guildmaster's name, even if you were in Treasure Town; you could never tell if his name was what summoned him or not, but you never wanted to test it. She nodded and hung her head in shame, and as she walked out of the room past her leader she felt his eyes on her back, giving her goosebumps (was that possible for a plant?). She was quiet the rest of the way there, and they quickly found their spots across from Team Charm at the table. Unfortunately, they hadn't run off.

Melody gritted her teeth. _This is going to be the biggest test of my self-control yet._

* * *

Finally, after what seemed like hours of Melody grinding her teeth as she listened to the annoyances babble on and on to Rain, the feast was over and they could move about freely once more. They were allowed to talk, dance, eat some more, or anything else that was reasonable and harmless. Since chopping Lilian's head off was out of the question, Melody found herself sneaking off again after only a few minutes to the room she had hid in before.

Imagine her surprise when, as she walked into the door, Rain turned around and had his turn looking guilty and ashamed.

"…R-Rain?" Melody gulped. _Man, this is definitely not helping._ "What are _you_ doing here?"

He gulped as well. _Crap, you've been caught! Say something smart! Anything!_ He scratched the back of his head nervously. "I…needed some air…?" _Great. Nice job, you idiot._

She nodded, too overwhelmed in her own thoughts to notice how excessively anxious he was. She stood at the door, unable to decide on whether she should come in or not, and kept her gaze on the floor. _What do I do? This is extremely awkward…and what if I blurt out something stupid?_

"You can, uh…." The Gallade motioned at the chair across from him. "…sit down."

Her face heating up rather fast, she nodded with a "r-right" and quickly sat down so that she could avoid looking him in the eyes. She really wanted to scream and run away, energy just pent up inside and ready to explode, but she packed it all away and tried to store it in a box that had been overfilled for a long time. She just had to hope she didn't blow when he was around.

"So, uhh," he tried to start a conversation, uncomfortable in the silence, "Team AWD is going to one of the Zero Isles…right?" He seemed unsure of himself, even though they had both heard Lady Weavile said it, and it was then that Melody noticed his nervous demeanor. When she nodded, he copied the gesture and mumbled, "Right…." He then fell quiet again, mentally cursing himself because of his failure at conversation. _Team Charm is much better at this, I hate to admit…they make it look so _easy.

As Melody looked out of the window to avoid his gaze, she noticed something in the sky. "Whoa!" She leapt up to her feet, scaring her leader into an offensive position, and pointed, shouting, "Shooting star!" Immediately, she closed her eyes and made a wish, one that she knew she shouldn't make because it couldn't possibly come true. _I wish that I could get Rain to understand how I feel about him…someday._

The Gallade looked out at the darkness, thinking about the myth around shooting stars. He wanted to ask her what she wished for, but he knew that the wish supposedly wouldn't come true if she told him. Instead, he slowly sat back down and put his elbows on his knees (blades sheathed, of course), crossing his arms and watching her face for some type of clue. _She looks…sort of sad._ Guilt swept over him again at the thought of her (and Bobby's) reluctance to be here, and he considered what Corvax had said to him before the ball.

Melody opened her eyes to see her leader's thoughtful face, and she tilted her head in confusion as she tried to read his mind. _What could he be thinking of? How ridiculous making wishes is?_ She was far from it, though, as he suddenly stood up and walked to the door, stopping only to turn to her.

"Come on, we're leaving."

It took her a moment to comprehend what he was saying, and when she finally did, her jaw dropped and her eyes grew wide. "W-what? Leaving? But, you said…we can't! Guildmaster!" She shivered at the reminder.

His expression was pensive for a moment, biting his lip as he weighed his morals and his duty. He finally announced, "I put my teammates before everything else. They matter more than anything."

She couldn't help the stomach-drop-heart-stop feeling that came when she looked at his serious yet caring face and heard him say such a thoughtful thing, but she mentally scolded herself to stop being all mushy-gushy and to pay attention. She did smile, but she tried to make it as simple as possible as she told him, "Thanks."

He only nodded, and he walked out of the room and into the main room trusting her to follow as he searched for Bobby in the crowd. He saw her from afar and jerked his head over when she saw him, but she only smiled and shook her head, motioning to the Drapion beside her. She was talking with her friend, Toxi, and would rather stay here to cover them if anyone asked questions. It was as if she knew all along Rain was going to do this, and with her immense wisdom, she probably did. He smiled, a silent "thank you" passed between them, and then directed Melody to go up first. After a few minutes had passed (so that no one would be suspicious), he would join her outside, and then they'd leave.

When she finally reached the top and got outside of the giant pink dome shaped after the Guildmaster, she was amazed at how stunning the stars looked now that she wasn't underground. It may have just been a psychological thing – after all, she had just escaped the horrible ball that seemed to suffocate and torture her – but it didn't really matter to her. She simply sat down on the ground outside of the Guild and leaned back, using her arms to prop her up as she gazed at the wonders of the night sky. She couldn't believe that everyone down there was missing this beautiful spectacle, and she was glad to have the chance to witness it herself.

After what only seemed to be a few seconds to her, Rain stepped out of the Guild and stood beside her. He contemplated asking her what she was doing, but since it was obvious he instead raised his head and looked up into the sky. The stars were bright and spotted the night like Illumise and Volbeat, and he had to admit that it was a sight to behold. Normally, him and his team were inside of their base by the time night fell, or doing a mission that wouldn't let them focus or stop to enjoy anything. But now, while they relaxed to the music that filtered in from the ball below, they could truly see the beauty that was the night.

"It's…." He could barely think of a word to fit what he wanted to say. "…amazing."

"Yeah." Melody smiled, enjoying the moonlight even though she adored having the sun's rays upon her skin. "It really is." Sharing this moment with him was wonderful, and a sudden inspiration caused her to stand up and tell him, "This reminds me of a dance back at home." Unable to describe it with words, she decided to show it to him.

He looked down at her voice and was surprised to see her twirl around with her eyes closed before stopping suddenly in an elegant pose. He wasn't used to seeing her do anything like that, considering her clumsiness, and so this was a real shocker to witness. He watched with wide eyes as she danced like a Bellossom would under the sun, and he couldn't help but be amazed as well as curious. The dance seemed familiar…where had he seen it before? And he was sure there was supposed to be a male in the dance, but she was doing perfectly fine without one.

She tried to focus completely on the dance, since she knew what its real meaning was, and she couldn't help but have Butterfree in her gut fluttering about. It was a dance that, when done by two Pokemon, showed their everlasting love for each other and how they'd go through fire – a Grass-Type's worst enemy – to protect the other. It was the ultimate example of love and was held in high regard by her species, and yet what she was doing was almost a mockery of it. She couldn't be as graceful as her sisters or mother when she twirled or as powerful and passionate as her father when she leapt – but she could damn well try. Her dance was an act of a flailing heart, of one who, without a partner to dance with, was almost begging on her knees for her love to be returned to her. Anyone who did this dance alone was a desperate and foolish person, and yet it always struck the hearts of their peers as depressing for one to go through so much alone.

She finished the dance by twirling once more before sinking to one knee and bowing her head, the imaginary music finishing its crescendo with a sad jingle at the end. With her eyes kept closed, she was afraid to look up and see the look on her leader's face, and her heart beat frantically at the thought of him saying something about the dance. _Does he know about it? Did he see what I meant?_ She sat there for a moment, panting from the exertion of a dance she had put her heart and soul into, before finally she decided to stop being a pansy (haha, plant jokes) and glance up at her leader's face.

His ruby eyes were wide with shock and wonder, and Rain found that his mouth had fallen open sometime during the performance. He quickly shut it when she looked up and gulped, trying to think of something to say. "…beautiful!" He mentally slapped his forehead. "The dance, I mean." _Way to go, you look like idiot. Want a trophy for being the "World's Dumbest Gallade"?_

Melody slowly stood up and tried to keep her voice cool and calm as she told him, "Th-thanks." She gulped as suddenly the inspiration was gone and she was left standing there awkwardly in its wake. _Why did I do that? Sure, the moon is out and all, which is when the loners dance…but still, why? He wouldn't understand it, anyways, and if he did, I'd be mortified._

With the silence falling between them, Rain felt he had to fight it back like a knight would a dragon, and so he asked her, "That dance – it, uhh, looks familiar. Where have I seen it before?" The team was rarely apart, so what one of them saw, they all saw. That's why it was slightly odd that Bobby decided to stay at the ball…but, then again, she probably knew it would be better for the both of them if she butted out.

Melody gulped, scared of telling him but also afraid to lie to him. Unable to do the latter, she mumbled, "It was when, uhh, we went to my giant family reunion…."

The Gallade thought for a while, taking his memory back to the occasion. Melody was trying to avoid talking with most of the Pokemon there (she had such an immense family that it was ridiculous trying to remember all of their names, so how she did it was incredible), and then one of her older sisters started to dance with her mate. It had a lot of similarities to the dance he saw, and yet it was somehow different. He frowned as he thought about it, and when he noticed her unease he finally decided to ask her something.

"You didn't enjoy being at the ball…right?" She nodded, a bit confused as to why he was asking her that. "Well, the ball has dancing…and yet, you just danced almost flawlessly." He stumbled a little over the compliment, but he was seriously curious. "Have you…danced a lot before? At balls?"

"Uhh, no, I, uhh…." She gulped. "At the balls back home, I normally didn't have anyone to dance with. Well," she rolled her eyes, "excluding my father."

He nodded, looking a little relieved, and then she was struck by curiosity as well. She tilted her head and looked up at him with a frown. "Why…do you ask?"

Now it was his turn to flush red. They seemed to take turns in a lot of things. "Well, I was, um…curious if you danced with a lot of people."

"No." She shook her head, looking a little sad. "I've never…done that dance with anyone before." As the Gallade tried to recall all that he knew of Roserade customs, Melody looked down at the grass in humiliation as she figured he would realize what it meant in little time. She walked over and sat beside him, keeping her head down so that he wouldn't see her teary eyes.

Surprisingly, he got down to one knee and tilted her head up with his hand, asking her, "Are you alright?" He had noticed how she shook a little, and he was now worried that he had upset her. The sight of his concerned face just made her cry even more, and when he saw her tears he quickly picked her up and cradled her, telling her, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean…please don't cry."

She shook her head, croaking, "No, it's not…you're fault. It's mine." She buried her head in her roses, trying to hide her face. "I'm just a stupid, stupid lovesick fool."

His heart stopped a moment at that statement, and he said quietly, "I'm…sorry to upset you. I didn't know…." He had no clue of what to say. "I'm sure that whoever he is…he can return your feelings." He had to fight the lump that was forming in his throat and to keep his face as calm as he could.

She shook her head. "No, he can't, because he already has a bunch of better girls to choose from."

He frowned. "Really? Then, why do you like him?" He was a bit irritated at the thought of her affections being wasted.

"He's always there for me…."

"…oh." Baffled at the thought of a guy coming into the base under his nose, he then asked her, "Well then, if they're such "better girls", why hasn't he already chosen one of them?"

"I don't know!" She sniffed and looked up at him, asking, "Why haven't you?"

The sudden question smacked him in the face, and the shock afterwards took control of his arms and caused him to drop her. After he realized what he'd done, however, he quickly stood her up again and apologized, "Oh, Arceus, I'm so sorry, Melody! I didn't think – I mean – I was surprised and –" He found that he couldn't say any complete sentences, and he finally choked out, "Sorry! So sorry!"

She was a bit surprised at his panicky barrage of apologies, but was even more astonished when he embraced her tightly, picking her up from the ground once again. She listened as he finally told her, "I admit that I have a lot of girls after my heart…but, I can't give it to them because they aren't worthy of it. I've been hoping that the one girl who always had my back would get it, but I…I never thought that I would already have hers." He looked her in the eyes to try to convey what he meant.

She gasped as the suggestion behind his words came through to her, and she stuttered, "You mean, I…you…we…both…." When he nodded, she hugged him tightly back as tears of happiness began to flow, and he patted her back comfortingly as they sat under the stars, finally beginning to understand each other. The sight was adorable, to say the least, and it would tug at anyone's hearts like the strings of a guitar.

Speaking of people watching them, two Pokemon sat in the pink hut and surveyed the scene with delight. Bobby smiled at the sight as Toxi whispered, "It's so sappy, and yet it's just so darn cute!"

"I know, right?" She then turned to the Drapion, telling her, "Alright, pay up! She confessed first, like I said!"

Toxi sighed and handed her the money she had on hand (err, claw), mumbling, "Stupid female hormones, making her break first and making me lose the bet."

Bobby only grinned. Yes, this was a wonderful night of finding yourself to be loved after all – and getting a little bit richer. She'd buy a hat after this was all over.

* * *

Lots of dragon-y love (and cookies!),  
~DL ('Dragon Lover')


End file.
